Heavy Flooding Strikes India

Our “31 in 31” series takes another detour today as we visit India, a country hit hard in recent days by some of the worst flooding in decades. (We promise that we’ll get to Vietnam soon!)

By Ellie Whinnery
Public Relations Manager

From earthquakes to floods, Asia has been hit hard in the past few weeks with natural disasters. As we did yesterday, we’ve altered our blog schedule today to visit one of these areas – India.

Heavy rains over North Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh in southern India have caused serious flooding. According to Reuters, more than 250 people have been killed and more than 5 million people are in emergency shelters. ChildFund International is working with the local governments and partner organizations in southern India to address what some are calling the worst flooding in 40 years.

Many families were forced to leave their homes for higher ground because their villages are surrounded by water. The floods washed away livestock and destroyed crops. Many roads collapsed, making it difficult for ChildFund teams to reach local communities.

Major power outages have made communications difficult. In Karnataka, ChildFund assessment teams reported that 14 villages in the Vimochana Child Development Project were affected. Seven villages in Gangavati in the Koppal district also were impacted. Five villages in Kurnool district where ChildFund works have been severely impacted, with collapsed houses and crops destroyed.

In Andreh Pradesh, more than 250,000 people in 200 villages have been moved to higher ground. ChildFund efforts are focused on securing safe drinking water and minimizing waterborne diseases.

For the latest information on this situation, click here to visit our Emergencies page. For more information about our work in India, click here.

More on IndiaPopulation: 1.1 billion
ChildFund beneficiaries: More than 630,000 children and families
Did You Know?: The game of chess got its start in India in the sixth century.